Photo: Public domain
Residents on Samoa's most populous island, Upolu, home to the capital, Apia, have been hit with power outages and are expected to continue facing disruptions in the coming weeks.
The outages, ongoing for the past two weeks, are due to maintenance work being carried out by the country's Electrical Power Corporation (EPC).
The utility company announced power rationing for parts of Upolu on Tuesday.
RNZ Pacific correspondent in Samoa, Tipi Autagavaia, told Pacific Waves that the public was frustrated and businesses were being hit hard.
"We [have] now been informed by the Electric Power Corporation that power is now [being] rationed for the next couple of weeks," Autagavaia said on Monday, adding that people are "hoping that two new generators will arrive for the Electric Power Corporation to solve the problem of very limited power supply."
Autagavaia said that the EPC was carrying out restoration work on high-voltage underground cables after water had been able to get through and cause a lot of problems in some of the connections.
However, he said that while the EPC has provided regular updates, it has done nothing to ease the public's frustrations.
"At least [now the EPC] is telling the different areas of Upolu what time the power will go off and what time will come back," he said.
"The last couple of weeks, the whole island just went off like that, and then it took about seven [or] eight hours until the power came back.
"But if the power is going to be rationed like this for the next couple of weeks, [there will be] a huge outcry from the public."
"Some families' electrical appliances have been ruined. [It is] very frustrating for the for the public.
"I have seen quite a number of hotels, restaurants, and even big shops in town are now using generators to be able to still service the customers.
"It is not a good thing to have power outages for more than four to five hours," he added.
